This year’s SCTE•ISBE’s Cable-Tec Expo in Denver was my 18th. To old-timers, that still makes me a rookie. Yes, the cable industry can be tight-knit and self-referential. But it is also welcoming, open to change and attentive to innovation. And mile-high Denver was the place to go this fall to tap into the industry’s forward-looking execs.

Joining the big blue bear at the Denver Convention Center on the opening day were the CEOs of Charter, Comcast Cable, ARRIS and Liberty Global. Mike Fries of Liberty Global was a notable addition. I’d heard him at Cable Congress in Europe and the now-defunct NTCA Cable Show (renamed INTX) but never at Cable-Tec Expo. Known for his blunt style, Fries is famous for taking on the industry’s critics. Here he gave Comcast Cable President of Technology and Product Tony Werner some friendly advice on the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) business.

Strong International, More Tech Sessions

In addition to Liberty Global, which is headquartered in London, this year’s event had a strong international presence on the show floor, with 22 percent of attendees coming from outside the U.S.

Affected by the demise of INTX, this event also produced more technical papers than ever. Close collaboration with NCTA and CableLabs helped boost the number of Fall Technical Forum sessions (previously called workshop sessions) to 98. That’s up more than a third from last year’s program in Philadelphia.

As a former editor of one of the industry’s trade journals, I’m delighted with that growth. Though I’m glad I don’t have to cover them all. I did agree to write up one session on machine learning (ML) for my friends at MultiChannel News.

Virtualization and Automation

That wasn’t the only session on ML and artificial intelligence (AI). And attention to those topics relates to an even keener interest in network virtualization. (The pre-conference seminar on Remote PHY drew twice as many attendees as expected, and the Light Reading breakfast event,“Virtualizing the Cable Architecture,” was also packed.)

Here’s how the two technologies are connected: The more you virtualize, the less you can rely on manual configuration and human analysis. As a result, you need something “smarter” and more automated.

Let me help you

And as an independent writer, the greater number of sessions is good in another way. Tech companies often have trouble finding internal personnel who can deliver these papers. So they look for outside help. If that’s your situation, give me a shout. I worked on several papers this year and expect to do so again next year. I’m familiar with most technology categories, appreciate your constraints and can help you hit that deadline.